Lawmakers Should Invite, Facilitate Bill Public Testimony: Zullo

EAST HAVEN, CT — In a forum he held Wednesday for residents to learn and talk about the state legislative process, Rep. Joe Zullo said that not only was it well-attended, but a few ideas voters had he promised to act on.

During the hour forum at the Hagaman Memorial Library, Zullo presented a slideshow that described how a bill becomes a law. He took questions and heard residents' ideas about legislation he should put forward this session.

One of the ideas that came out of the forum, he said in a press release, was a proposal to make it easier for the public to testify on legislation. Zullo said he agreed that the current process is antiquated and needs to be updated.

"The State Capitol and the Legislative Office Building are the people's buildings and should not be controlled by special interest groups and lobbyists," he said. "We need to make it easy for people to express what they think about legislation. I will be having a conversation with my caucus leadership and fellow lawmakers to see what we can do to fix the current way public hearings are handled at the State Capitol."

Zullo also said he'd be "reaching across the aisle to see if he can build bipartisan support to improve and make modifications to the State's affordable house framework."

Zullo, who won a Special Election in February 2019, said because he has "learned more about the legislative process in the year that he has served in Hartford," he wanted to share that with residents.

"It's so important for people to understand how their government works so that they can effectively communicate with their representatives and have a meaningful say in their government. My goal, through this forum, was to empower my constituents be able to better participate in Connecticut's legislative process."

Zullo said he plans on hosting more such events but added, "his door is always open."

Zullo and his staff can be reached at Joe.Zullo@cga.ct.gov or by calling 860-240-8700.